The impact of flooding in southern England has not been far away from the headlines for the past two weeks.
Today the Times ran the letter below from our conservation director Martin Harper briefly outlining the RSPB’s hopes for the future of the Somerset Levels. This letter was a response to an opinion column in the paper (which you can read here if you have a subscription) accusing the RSPB of ‘tacitly holding the view’ that the Levels should be left to revert to swampland.
Sir, We have no desire to see the Levels devoid of people and farms. The floods are as bad for wildlife as they are for people.
We envisage a landscape rich in wildlife, where people enjoy a thriving economy based on the region’s special qualities and where farmers rear quality livestock cheek by jowl with wildlife. By managing flood risks and controlling levels, we trust the community will once again enjoy its wetland landscapes.
This bold vision requires political leadership, courage and investment. The reward will be a flourishing region, proud of its natural assets and heritage.
Martin Harper
Another letter signed by Martin alongside the Angling Trust, the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust and the Wildlife Trusts ran in the Observer at the weekend defending the Environment Agency and calling for the government to get a strategic grip on flood planning.
The weekend’s papers also featured a piece from environment columnist Charles Clover looking at the link between changes in farming and the silt build up in rivers which has contributed to flooding. However he notes: “A consensus is coming together for the Somerset Levels. It unites the National Farmers Union, the RSPB, councils and the Environment Agency. The plan is likely to include dredging the rivers, building a barrage on the Parrett to stop sea flooding and changing farming practices in the upper catchments.”
Although much of the media’s focus has, naturally, been on the immediate impact to the homeowners and farmers affected, some journalists are opening up the debate on the lessons we need to learn from the current situation.
In one article the BBC’s Roger Harrabin explores the climate change background to flooding and the need to reengineer the whole system so water is captured in the uplands preventing downstream flooding.
In another piece, which quoted the RSPB, the Guardian’s Damian Carrington took a critical look at water policies and the need to find a natural solution to the impacts of extreme weather events.
The RSPB's Mark Robins has been a regular voice in the media debate about dredging rivers and preventing future flooding. Here he is being on channel 4 News being interviewed alongside local farmer John Hebditch -